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THE WHEEL 

Three Poetic Plays 

on 

Greek Subjects 



LAURENCE HOUSMAN 



Samuel French: Publisher 

28-30 West Thirty-eighth St. : New York 

PRICE TWENTY-SEVEN CENTS 



ms 



THE WHEEL 

Three Poetic Plays 

on 

Greek Subjects 



LAURENCE ^OUSMAN 



Samuel French: Publisher 

28-30 West Thirty-eighth St. : New York 



,iO^. 






s<^^ 



Copyright, 1920, By Laurence H0usman 

all rights reserved 

Permission to act, read publicly, or make any 
use of these three plays must be obtained from 
SAMUEL FRENCH, 28-30 West 38th Street, New 
York. 

They may be presented by amateurs upon pay- 
ment of royalty of five dollars each per perfoi-m- 
ance, royalty being payable to SAMUEL FRENCH 
three days before the date of production. 

Professional rates quoted on application. 



JON -3 ici^O 
©GID 5 4 847 






CONTENTS 

I. APOLLO IN HADES .... 7 

II. THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS . . 38 

III. THE DOOM OF ADMETUS . . 55 



I 

APOLLO IN HADES 



DRAMATIS PERSONAE 



Hades. 


Apollo. 


Thanatos. 


An Elder, 


Clotho, 


) Tiresias. 


Lachesis, 


> Fates A Youth, 


Atropos, 


J A Newcomer, 



J 



Shades, 



Chorus of Shades. 



THE WHEEL 



APOLLO IN HADES 

(A hall of black pillars, supporting a roof of solid 
stone. The stage opens dark. In the dimness 
Hades sits enthroned. Pale blue lightnings 
flash now and again upon his face as he speaks. 
A deep vibration fills the air.) 

HADES. Haaes, among the dead, sole God am L 
On earth men wither, and wax weak, and die, 
Pass forth, and are forgotten. But my realm. 
To whose dark borders Charon sets his helm, 
Keeps safe its myriad thralls. Unto my hand 
The sea of life hath washed them, as the sand 
W^ashed to the shore lies strewn, a barren waste 
immeasurable. Time goeth without haste. 
Night without day, for ever. King am I 
Of an unborn people which still multiply, 
Bringing my godhead strength. For lo, this 

breath 
Ui wind which bloweth about me is from the 

death 
Of mortal men; I gather from their lips 
My draught of life, and under their eclipse 
My rolling world moves on. 

To the Lord of Day 
Men yield their strength, and in my timeless 

sv/ay 
No holier power discern, — till here they come. 
But in my Kingdom sorrow and joy are dumb, 
9 



10 APOLLO IN HADES 

(Things without sense to men that have no 

need) ; 
And wrath, and jealousy, and fear, that breed 
In the day's Hght, are ended. To and fro 
Phoebus Apollo travelleth, working woe 
For all that trust in him. But my sure throne 
Stays fixed eternally, and peace alone 
Dwells with the dead. So for the avertless doom 
Of life's vain followers— the feet of whom 
Like roots I pluck from earth — round their brief 

years, 
Within my realm I have set ministers, 
To work the unchanging Will. Grey Sisters 

three. 
Blindly they weave the web of destiny 
For the lives they know not, and without lov^ 

or hate 
Mete out their span of days. For this is Fate; 
And none shall make it other. 

Enter thanatos. 

Who goes there? 
THANATOS. Thy servant. Death. 
HADES. Whither ? 

THANATOS. Up yonder, where 

Thy dead men cry for me. 
HADES. Whence art thou come? 

Ti-iANATos. From Those men name not. Yonder 
canst hear the hum 
Of that great Wheel where the world's mortal 

coil 
Speeds to its end. 



APOLLO IN HADES ii 

HADES. But ends not. 

TiiANATOS. Nor my toil. 

Thy bidding, Lord ? 
HADES. Go ! get thee gone, and do 

The Will that sends thee ! 
THANATOS. And fill Up anew 

This world of shades. 
HADES. Where, without end, I reign. 

[Darkness closes, covering hades and the 
throne from view. In its place pre- 
sently appears the stairway leading to the 
upper zvorld. 

THANATOS. So, lest he chide, I must be swift 
again 
And fetch him fodder! Ah, thou nimble' light, 
I love thee not ! Better I work by night 
Than e'er by day. 

[In a pillared recess to the r^rihf of the 
stairway appear the Three Fates, plying 
their task. clotho turns her wheel; 
LACHESis draws out the thread and 
gathers it into a skein of varying lengths. 
ATROPOS with her shears cuts it through. 

THANATOS. Grey Sisters, is it your will 

That I go now? 

[lachesis flings him the shorn skein. 
Ah, ha! I get my fill 
Of good things sometimes ! Oh, how many a 

life 
Lies shattered here, — youth, maiden, man, and 
vife, 



12 APOLLO IN HADES 

Greybeard, and child! Closely within one knot 
I'll tie them fast. Souls keep when bodies rot! 

[Laughing he goes up the stair. As he goes 
the Shade of a youth, hitherto unobserved 
reclining against a pillar, moves forward 

and watches him. For a moment the 
faint ray of light which illumines the 
stair increases, as though a door at the 
far end had been opened. A note of 
song is heard: then a door hangs, and 

settled darkness returns again. 

CLOTHO. Sisters, that task is done, 

And another has begun. 

So must life run, ' 

Till the world behold no sun. 
LACHESis. Till the day when man saith, ' 

Being born, T am quit of breath!" 

Till he cry unto Life and Death 

'Ye are one !' as he perisheth. 
ATROPOS. Yea, until men shall say, 

'Death is Life; Night is Day'; — 

Then is it time to lay 

Distaff and shears away. 
CLOTHO. Sisters, the word is said: 

When the feet of the lame go sped. 

And the fruitful forget to wed. 

Time will have dug his bed. 
ALL THREE. We toil till the world is dead. 

[Darkness, like a wall, closes over them; 
they disappear. 



APOLLO IN HADES 13 

Enter chorus of shades. 

CHORUS. The sound of the Wheel: tis ever the 
same, — 

They at their labour; we at our rest. 

To this world empty of hand I came, 

And surely my feet, as they passed, were slow. 

And the life they had left seemed best. 

But now have I seen, and know 

That the feet which journey no more are blest, 

And the hands which empty remain. 

Nay, v/hy should I fill them again 

With care and a weight of woe ? 

For, having tasted the cup, 

No longer do I fear death: 

But bitter my thirst, and sore 

When the draught to give up 

Was breath. 
A YOUTH. Since when have I seen a flower 

Arise, and blossom, and fade; 

Or heaven, at the twilight hour, 

Cover earth with her shade? 

Since when have I looked on bliss, 

The brief-comer, and been afraid? 
AN ELDER. What need to reckon of time, 

Vv'here day and night are forgotterf? 

Can flower find root in the clime 

Of the unborn, the unbegotten? 

\¥herefore dost thou ask this? 

Of what hope hast thou been betrayed? 
YOUTH. Only a little thing : 

A moment yon door stood wide. 

And a far-off beam, of light 



14 APOLLO IN HADES ' 

Stole in, and died 

In the gloom. ; 

And memoiT came and cried; 

For I heard a strange bird sing 

From the world that was once my tomb. 
ELDER. Content thee, brother, afresh ! 

Surely 'tis nothing to thee. 

Would thy spirit again wear flesh? 

Wouldst thou long for what shall not be? 

Was prayer not a weariness: 

Was the answer so sure? 

Reach, and embrace thy doom, 

And keep peace; for that shall endure. 
1ST SHADE. Lo, yonder, Charon's barge hath 

touched the strand. 
2ND SHADE. See the new Shades, uncertain as they 
land 

Whither to turn ! 
1ST SHADE. For they know nothing yet 

Of this mute world whereto their sun hath set. 
2ND SHADE. See, they are approaching ! 

Enter shades. 

YOUTH. [To one carrying a withered spray.] 

Thou art a, newcomer: 

What dost thou remember? 

What, in thy hand, is 

This thing thou boldest? 
NEWCOMER. Ask uot, for I know not! 

Lately I have drunk sweetness . 

In deep-flowing Lethe. 



APOLLO IN HADES 15 

That draught was painless, 
Restful, and sufficient. 

[He lets fall the spray, and passes. 

ELDER. [To YOUTH.] 

Why wouldst thou probe the past? What is 
thy quest ? 
YOUTH. I heard a bird ! 
ELDER. Hast thou not drunk of Lethe, and found 

rest ? 
SHADE. Tell me, for I am a stranger; here I see 

Faces, yet none I know. Who shall these be? 
ELDER. Shades of the Dead. 
SHADE. And yon man, with a face 

More living than the rest, and in his hand 

Bearing a golden rod ? 
ELDER. Tiresias. 

Blind, he still sees ; the woe he bore on earth 

Afflicts him yet; and power to prophesy 

Holds him from peace. 
SHADE. Tells he the things he knows? 

ELDER. He may: we heed not. Rumour runs not 

here. 

For in this world, things hidden, or things fore- 
told, 

Concern us not. 
SHADE. Yet one thing would I learn ! 

TIRESIAS. I know thy mind. Seek not, for it is 
vain. 

Look no more backward now ; no profit dwells 

In lives outworn. Men wither till they die. 

Then fixed remain for ever. But forward still. 



i6 APOLLO IN HADES 

Affronting these blank orbs, the world wheels 

on: 
It rests not yet. And v^^e, like shadows with it. 
Are slowly borne to ends which have no end — 
That lips may utter. 

[He sits and remains fixed in deep medi- 
tation. 

ELDER. Tl^e oracle hath ceased, and sleeps again. 

Break not his slumber! 
SHADE. Nay, but he lifts his head. 

Blind man, what dost thou see? 
TiRESiAS. I hear the tread 

Of one that runneth — swiftly. 
SHADE. I listen in vain. 

TIRESIAS. Into this underworld now cometh pain. 

Grief and calamity. Oh, unlooked-for woe ! 
ELDER. Sayest thou so? 

Thou'rt an uneasy sleeper; sleep again! 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. Doth not this gift of dreams 

Bring peace to thy mind 

And rest? 

For the thing which only seems, 

If it seems to be so, is best. 

What better reward shalt thou find 

Wherewith in thy day to be blest? 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. For, surely, here without end 

I shall dwell in a world of dreams. 

Hearing the ripple and flow 

Of shrunken and vanished streams; 

For hither from Earth descend 

The ghosts of her years that go: — 

The shadows of sunlit hours, 



APOLLO IN HADES 17 

The scent of the fallen flowers, 
The lowing of dead herds, 
And the hushed warble of birds. 
So, evermore, be it mine, 
Untroubled of heart to dwell 
Where all that had life sleep well 
In the garden of Proserpine. 
SHADE, [to TiRESiAs]. Why dost thou stand and 
wait, and watch, blindly at 37on closed portal? 
[A clash of cymbals is heard, and a voice 
singing. 
VOICE. Unbar ye doors ! Uplift ye gates ! I am 

the Life Immortal! 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. What marvel is this, — 

And that brings what word? 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. 'Tis a voice that sings 

To a sound of strings ! 
YOUTH. 'Tis the voice I heard! 
CHORUS. The voice he heard'^ 

And swiftly it cometh on shining wings ! 

[A sound of opening doors; the stairway 

to the upper world is flooded zvith light. 

Strina-music arows louder, joyous and 

full of triumph. 

APOLLO [wifhoutl. Awake, arise, ye Dead, and 

look on Dav ! 
TIRESIAS. A double death is yours, if ye obey! 
APOLLO. [without]. I am Apollo! Turn, and 
look on me ! 

[apollo appears descendina the stairs: he 
hears a harP. and at his girdle a wine-skin 
and a cuP of qold. 



i8 APOLLO IN HADES 

CHORUS. He Cometh with bow and with quiver! 

TiRESiAS. Woe to the ears that hear, the eyes that 
see! 

CHORUS. What word, what word to deUver? 

APOLLO. To lowest Hell the beams of Heaven I 
bring. 

CHORUS. The beams of Heaven, yea, the beams ! 

TIRESIAS. Ye are destroyed, if ye behold this thing ! 

CHORUS. We behold ; but no longer in dreams ! 

APOLLO. With shafts of light I shatter the bars 
of Hell. 

CHORUS. His shafts have shattered the bars ! 

TIRESIAS. O place of peace, now made most miser- 
able! 

CHORUS. And lo, the Heavens, and the stars. 
And the hills with their crowns of snow, 
Made bright by the sun ! 

TIRESIAS. It is finished and done; 
And there cometh woe upon woe! 

[The SHADES gather; they stand entranced 
and hang eagerly upon apollo^s words. 

APOLLO. [Speaking to music]. 

Hearken to me, Apollo, 

Lord of the Bow and the Quiver! 
CHORUS. We hear, and we wait to follow, 

O God, strong to deliver! 
APOLLO. Lo, where the dark way narrows, 

I, upon bended bow, 

Smote me a path with mine arrows 

Down to the Shades below. 
CHORUS. And from the bonds that bound us, 



APOLLO IN HADES 19 

And the tomb wherein thou hast found us. 

Mighty thou comest to save ! 
TiRESiAs. One man's soul from the grave. 

And to bring us to w^oe ! 
APOLLO. Gracious of heart have men found me, 

Who worshipped the work of my hands. 

Happy the cities that crowned me. 

And happy the lands. 

Have ye heard how I builded Troy, 

Whose name shall be known for ever? 
TIRESIAS. Yea, but for grief, not for joy: 

It shall fall ; it shall rise again never ! 
APOLLO Who is he, speaketh with a f roward mind ? 
TIRESIAS. I am Tiresias, whom the gods made blind. 
APOLLO. Tiresias ? 
TIRESIAS. Yea. 

APOLLO. Art thou a prophet still? 

TIRESIAS. With all the griefs to come my cup I 

fill. 
APOLLO. And the joys also? 
TIRESIAS. Reach thy guiding hand, 

And lead where I mjay find that looked- for land ! 
APOLLO. Rich joys are in this vintage which I 

bear. 
TIRESIAS. Thy draughts are mixed, the dregs there- 
of despair. 
APOLLO. Not for thy lips this cup; so be at rest! 
TIRESIAS. Yet shall it spill, and the unbidden guest 

Shall drink thereof, and, wailing, curse the day. 
APOLLO. Falsehood is on thy tongue! Bear him 
away ! 

[The SHADES close in and cover tiresias 
from view, apollo seats himself. 



20 APOLLO IN HADES 

CHORUS. Apollo, Apollo, thou comest 
With power to deliver! 
Before I prayed thou hast promised, 
All-mighty, All-giver ! 
APOLLO. Hearken, ye Shades! Because in the 

griefs of earth, 
And faithfulness between the doors of birth 
And death, which close dividing man from man. 
And bonds of love, enduring through the span 
Of life's brief years ;— because, in those dim 

wiays. 
Some trace I found of the celestial rays 
Which earthward fall from Heaven, now am 

I come 
On wings of healing to fulfil the sum 
Of one man's heart's desire. For I, his friend 
(He knowing not the God), unto this end 
Have set my feet for service. 

It shall be told 
In days hereafter, how by flock and fold 
Nine years I toiled, banished from my high place 
For stain of blood. The glory from my face 
I put away, and m'ortals knew me not. 
Yet was this man my friend; he made my lot 
Pleasant for me. And, shepherd to this king. 
Friendship I found to be a holier thing 
Than Heaven had taught me. So, when my task 

was done. 
And up from earth I passed, a risen sun 
Renewed in splendour, unto this man I gave 
To ask one boon. And he : 'Let not the grave 
Take me before my time, — till I be old!' 
But not in the courts of Heaven can it be told 
When man shall die, nor how long he may live. 
So was that prize not in my hand to give, — 



APOLLO IN HADES 21 

Yet in my will to win. And for this end ~ 

Hither am I come, wholly to save my friend 
Who trusted me. So by these doors I wait 
To lay high hands of blessing upon his fate. 
TIRESIAS [emerging from the throng]. 

And lo, thy blessing shall become a curse ; 
And Death shall take the better for the worse ! 

[As the SHADES again close round him, the 
Hall of the Fates once more stands re- 
vealed. 

APOLLO. Where are ye, ye Grey Sisters? 
ELDER. Lo, they stand 

Yonder to do thy bidding. 

[apollo takes the cup from his girdle, un- 
slings the wine-skin atid pours out wine. 

SHADE. God, in thy hand 

What is that cup thou boldest? 
APOLLO. 'Tis a wine 

Which whoso drinketh, he becometh mine. 
Worshipping at my throne. 
Strange, Sisters, is your toil in this far place. 
ATROPOS. Yea, strange to many; but more strange 
thy face 
Among the dead. Wherefore art thou come 
here ? 
APOLLO. To gaze on these grey Forms which all 

men fear. 
ATROPOS. Weighs there no fear of Heaven on mor- 
tal breath? 
APOLLO. Aye, many fear us; but more men fear 
death. 



22 APOLLO IN HADES 

ATROPOS. To thee, the All-giver, do men pray in 

vain ? 
APOLLO. Nay, many have I upraised, and many 

slain. 
ATROPOS. We saw thy slain ; but those whom thou 
hast raised, 
V/e knov*^ not, nor by the dead have heard thee- 
praised. 
APOLLO. My praise is on the lips of living men. 
ATROPOS. Yea, till they die : they are forgetful then. 
APOLLO. Having drunk Lethe. 
ATROPOS. Therefore, O thou young Star,^ 

Brief is thy reign : more strong those waters are 
Than any wine. 
APOLLO. Yet to your lips I bring 

A cup, which ye shall taste with thanksgiving, 
And keep in mind for ever. 
ATROPOS. Pour it away! 

Give me no vintage warm from the breath of 
day, 
APOLLO. Cool is this draught, yet doth it kindle 
fire. 
Here when men drink they find their heart's de- 
sire; 
And love of fame or power passes like breath,- 
Shame they forget; even the fear of death 
Holds them no more. 
ATROPOS. The fear of death? How so? 

APOLLO. For he that tastes this vintage letteth go 
The sight of his own eyes: straightway he sees 
As the Gods see in Heaven ; and from their knees 
Looks down on little earth where he was bom; 
And wheel, and web, and shears, he holds in 

scorn. 
In that brief moment he hath lived his days; 
And howsoever, then, dark fortune sways, — 



APOLLO IN HADES 23 

Fate's but a flea-bite. 
ATROPOS. Let me taste this wine! 

APOLLO. But ye must share it. 
ATROPOS. All things that I make mine 

Are hers, and hers. 
APOLLO. So be it ! No drop shall spill. 

Hither reach hand, and take, and drink your 
fill! 

[atropos takes the cup, drinks, and passes if 
to her Sisters, zvho drink each in turn. 

ATROPO.s. Yea, now have I quaffed. 
LACHESis. I have drunk a deep draught. 
CLOTHO. As I drank, the cup laughed. 

[apollo strikes upon his harp 

LACHESIS. What is here, O my soul? 
ATROPOS. There was music in that bowl. 
CLOTHO. A sound as of bells that toll. 

[apollo strikes again 
ATROPOS. Yea, and I heard them sing, 
LACHESIS. How the Earth is a green thing, 
CLOTHO. A place whence rivers spring. 

[She rises and speaks more swiftly^ 
APOLLo's harp strikes accomlpaniment. 

Hark ! I hear a noise of rills 

And of torrents falling; 

There are murmurs in the valleys, 

There are voices in the hills. 

'Tis the Naiads, who are calling 

From their crannies in the rocks. 

And the pools where the water spills. 

But they heed not, nor hearken 

As the flying echo mocks; 



24 APOLLO IN HADES 

And out from a cleft there sallies 

A young stream dancing for glee, 

With leaping feet, and with laughter, 

Crying, 'I am free, I am free !' 

And long bright locks flowing after. 

As she dances down to the sea! 
LACHESis. In the woods, when the Dryad wakes, 

There under the green of the boughs, 

Lurking wnth horned brows, 

Young Faun hath she seen. 

He reaches his hand, he takes, 

Holding her fast by the hair; 

And there comes a shower of leaves, 

As a sharp wind lifts and heaves; 

But she leaps and the long bough breaks. 

And the place where he hid lies bare. 
^ATROPOS. From the day's long heat, 

And the drought of noon. 

To a land smitten with fire, 

Com'st thou not soon, 

O my Lord, on swift feet, 

To feast at thy heart's desire? 

Ah! what is this thou hast done? 

What binding in bonds, without shape? 

She fears thee, but cannot escape; 

And her feet may not run; 

And her eyes may not see, being blind. 

Take her, O Holy One, 

Take her, and gather, and bind ! 

Let her be as a grape 

To thy treading, as grain to thy flail, 

Ere she fail, and be brought to the grave ; 

Ere she comes to the brink 

Of the waters of Lethe, and sink, 

And be lost in that wave ! 

[The chant ceases; she speaks. 



APOLLO IN HADES 25 

Give me more of this drink. 

[APOLLO refills the cup, and hands ii. 
APOLLO. Take and drink all of it ! For this 
Is Life eternal, and brings bliss ! 

[The FATES drink: they are seised zvith 
ecstasy, and speak in chorus. 
FATES. Faster, faster, 
O God Apollo, 

Lord and Master 
Guide me, and lead me ! 
Wheresoe'er thou goest, 
My feet shall follow. 
The way thou showest 
Shall be my way also. 
If thou dost need me, 

Break me to thy will, and bend me! 

Yea, let thy ministers, 

rhy lovers which attend thee, 

Jake at my hand for a gift 

Whatsoe'er thou seekest! 

Out of the mire I will lift 

The woeful of heart, the weakest: 

1 will break the power of the strong, 
And confound the way of the wisest; 
I will save the soul thou prizest, 
Making his brief days long. 

The life, which is my giving. 
Shall return to the land of the living! 

[The SHADES utter a cry of joy. 
APOLLO. Bear witness, O ye Dead, and stand by 
me! 
What Fate hath promised now shall Fate de- 
cree. 
CHORUS. For now the word hath been spoken. 
And the bonds of Hell shall be broken ! 

[The FATES are themselves again. 



26 APOLLO IN HADES 

ATROPOS. What have I said? 
CLOTHO. What word, heard of the Dead, 
LACHESis. Out of my hps hath sped ? 
APOLLO. To his young soul, whom hither I came 
to save. 

Your word hath wrought dehverance from the 
grave. 
CLOTHO. Nay, for that may not be. 
ATROPOS. No thread of hfe breaks free. 
LACHESIS. What manner of man is he? 
APOLLO. Admetus, Lord of Pherae, and my friend. 
CLOTHO. Lo, here his web I spin. 
ATROPOS. His hfe shall end 

To-morrow. 
LACHESIS. And no hand can change that doom. 
APOLLO. It is thy hand which gives him to the 

tomb. 
ATROPOS. A life is a life still: 
CLOTHO. We do the unchanging Will, 
LACHESIS. And doom upon doom fulfil. 
APOLLO. May not another die and take his place? 
ATROPOS. Go thou, and ask if any of mortal race 

Will die to save another ! 
APOLLO. If so it be 

That I find — one? 
ATROPOS. Aye ! Then shall he go free : 

So num^ber we our dead, of whose amount 

To Hades, holy and high, the strict account 

Stands due. 
APOLLO. Well said ! I hold thee to that bond ; 

For with immortal eyes I see beyond 

This moment of man's breath, and I discern 

That in his house dwells one whose love shall 
, turn 

Destruction from his path. She, in his stead. 



APOLLO IN HADES 27 

Hither shall come, and dwell among the dead. 
ATROPOS. This, dost thou promise? 
APOLLO. Yea, by this Form of light 

I swear it. 
ATROPOs. So thou givest to us our right, 

Him do we yield. Take : with this thread un- 
shorn. 
Bind fast the life of him thou wouldst not mourn. 
APOLLO. It is enough. Hades, thou hidden God, 
Let this thing stand confirmed by thy nod. 

[A roll of thunder is heard. The cave of 
the FATES disappears. 
Hear, O ye Dead ! A God smote with his breath, 
And in this place, dividing life from death. 
Succoured his friend : which life I bear away 
Safe in my bosom to the realm of day. 
Farewell ! 

[The SHADES move in troubled astonishment. 
To those which come hereafter, ye shall tell 
How, on a day, down to the depth of Hell 
Song sounded, and there sprang a shaft of lip-ht 
That struck its way, and, conquering Death and 

Night, 
One man less mortal made. 
But now my bright beams call me, and I go 
Lightly away to the hills of stainless snow. 
And the far heights of Heaven; and here be- 
low 
Ye'Il see my face no more. Yet have ye been 
Beholders of a marvel — having seen 
My light and glory — and with dead ears have 

heard 
The sounded music of the Eternal Word. 

[ APOLLO turns and goes up the stair, playing 
upon his harp as he goes. The liqht of 



28 APOLLO IN HADES 

his presence fades and disappears; his 
harp is no longer heard. There comes 
the dull clang of a closing door. Hell 
is left desolate. The shades, having 
watched the God's departure with strain- 
ing eyes, remain motionless, all qasing 
the same way. There follows a long pause. 
Presently they turn and look at each other 
in open-mouthed wonder and grief. 
Through their midst, zvith dazed face, tot- 
ters an elder: he stumbles, pauses, then 
speaks. 
ELDER. I stumble, and my feet falter, 

And, for fear, stir not again. 

Brothers, what shall be said 

Of this deed I have done? 

For here is one lieth dead 

Who worshipped our Lord, the Sun. 

And ye see how my hands drip red 

With the life of the victim slain ! 

Tell me, at what dark altar. 

Have we taken God's name in vain? 
SHADES. Apollo, Apollo, Apollo ! 

Have we called thee in vain? 
YOUTH. I heard a bird that sung; 

And gold were the wings it spread. 

And lo, as it came, there sprung 

A hope in the heart of the dead: '■■ 

Till I saw a vulture thrust forth his head. 

And the claws of a bird of prey; 

And a morsel of flesh that hung. 

As the red beak bore it away ! 
SHADES. Apollo, Apollo! 

Cam'st thou in vain? 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. His arrow of light he drew 

As a shaft from its sheath. — 



APOLLO IN HADES 29 

Loosed it, and forth it flew. 

And pierced to the world beneath: 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. And bodics which held no 
breath, 

And eyes which beheld no light, 

He delivered to second death. 

And to endless night ! 
CHORUS. Curse ye, curse ye, the song of the Bird, 

And the place where his wings have been ! 

Cursed be the ears which heard, 

And the eyes which have seen ! 
TiRESiAS. Peace ! It is over and done ; 

Now there remaineth a rest. 

Henceforth ye shall see no sun, 

No moon, and no star. 

But there cometh one from afar, — 

A Queen, yea more than a Queen, 

Whose name and whose goings are blest. 

Hither she cometh of her own choice. 

Her years were brief, and their end was grief, 

Yet with death hath she crowned her days : 

There is wisdom in all her ways. 

And comfort for them that hear her voice, 
ELDER. Why should I hearken again? 

To what voice? What tidings to know? 

By a light in my soul I was slain. 

And the song of a bird brought woe. 

O God, these empty hands ! 

And these feet that no longer run! 

And these blinded eyes where a vision stands. 

Black from the light of the Sun ! 

A God smote with his heel; 

We prayed, but lo, he was gone. 

What altar remains where the dead may kneel ? 

Yonder I hear the hum of the Wheel, 

And my doom runneth on. 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 



DRAMATIS PERSONAE 

Proserpine, Alcestis. 

Hermes. Tiresias. 

Voices of Furies. Shades. 

Chorus of Shades. 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

{The garden of Prosperpine lies under a great wall 
of rock which fills the entire background ex- 
cept zvhere an ascending way goes up to the 
right. In the centre, raised above the 
ground, is a deep cleft from which 
falls zvithout sound a thin stream of 
zvater. The rock's base is thickly set 
with poppies and asphodels, among which the 
Shades sit or crouch. Others stand, motion- 
less and apart, with bowed heads, holding 
hands. To right and left larger groups stand 
spectant; no head is raised. Tiresias, seated 
upon a rock beside the stream, and surrounded 
by recumbent forms, lifts and speaks.) 
TIRESIAS. Garden of Proserpine, that without 
breath, 
Or beam of travelling light, pours to my brain 
Scent of dead flowers, and to mine inward ear 
The murmur of waters from Earth's withered 

streams, — 
Deep bed of slumber, where the most holy Feet 
Bring in their train faint semblances of spring, 
Dim forms which change not, yet in sleep seem 

fair, — 
Now soon she cometh like a moon to rest, 
With downward sloping beam, and in her arms 
Ghosts of the young dead year, sun-shattered 

flowers 
From. Enna's fields, where for last look she 

turned. 
And lo, here also she shall find his dead. 
Pierced and sore-stricken, having no. will to rise 
33 



34 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

And gaze again on the once looked-for Face, 

When to black night and the dark nuptial bower 

She sinks her splendour. 
1ST SHADE. Who is he that speaks ? 

2ND SHADE. Tiresias, the blind. 
1ST SHADE. Surely his lot 

In Hell, the saddest once, proves hapgiest now ; 

For what we lost he saw not ! 

[He rises with a gesture of despair. 
2ND SHADE. Brother, let be ! 

Call not to mind the grief 

Which no tongue can mend: 

Strain not thine eyes for an end 

They would weep to see ! 
1ST SHADE. No tears are left me to shed. 

For the Sun's light drank them dry. 

My heart stays empty and dead, 

The husk of a withered hope; 

In the grave where the blind feet grope, 

Seeking a place to lie, 

I wander uncomforted. 

[He move's slowly away. 
3RD SHADE. How long must I hold in mind 

That vision, golden and fair? 

He came; and for joy I was blind: 

I looked; and he was not there. 
CHORUS. Hear us, O ye deaf ears ! 

Hither, O feet, once swift ! 

O voice of the dawn when daylight appears, 

Restore us the gift! 
3RD SHADE. See, yonder there cometh a throng. 
2ND SHADE. The shades of the newly dead. 
3RD SHADE. And the grief and the wrong 

We bear, mean nothing to these; 

Because, as they crossed its flow, 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 35 

They drank of the river of peace, 

And their hearts were cleansed from woe. 
1ST SHADE. Ah! might I arise and go 

Back hence, on returning feet, 

And come again to the brink 

Of Lethe, and stoop there and drink, — 

How the draught would be sweet ! 
CHORUS. Hear us, O Lord of Light! 

Hither on healing wings : 

Take from a people which walk in night 

This vision which stings ! 

Enter shades of the newly Dead. 

iSTEw SHADES. Ye Shades, why stand ye gazing 

Yonder, where shines no heaven? 

What see ye, or what seek ye, 

Above, in the thick darkness? 

Tell us, for here we are strangers. 

What worship is this ye render? 
CHORUS. He came: over the darkness 

He spake, and our ears heard him; 

We beheld, and lo, he was by us; 

We prayed, and lo, he was with us; 

We knelt, salvation was nigh us; 

The Fates trembled and feared him. 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. With worshipping hands we 
raised him 

Hearts that were fain to adore; 

Sweet to his ears we praised him. 

And the life he came to restore. 
:2ND SEMI-CHORUS. Ah, spcak not of that! But 
tell 

Of the end which befell ! 



Z6 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

1ST SEMI-CHORUS. Nay, had we not this for a 
showing 

Of his fame, and power of his might? 

Like the day-spring on high he came. 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. His going — brought night ! 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. From the speed of his feet he 
shook 

The dust of our souls, and took 

The hght of his glory that shone from; us. 
2ND SEMi-CHORUs. And the darkness became as a 
wall. 

As upward to earth he bore 

The one soul saved out of all. 

We looked, but lo, he was gone frcm\is! 

And the place knew hirn no more. 
CHORUS. Ah, God, who dwellest in light, 

Ho\v came this thing to be done 

Nor in the darkness, or the dead of night. 

But in sight of the Sun? 

Woe, woe ! _^^ 

It was done ! It was done ! 

[They how down with covered faces. 
NEW SHADES. Holds Hell such grief? 

And is Death so robbed of his worth. 

That the weight of the hand of He'^ven 

Lies under the Earth? 

Woe, wee! for my peace is now ended, 

My sorrow begun! {They cover their faces. 

TiRESiAS. Moon of the Dead,, whose coming 
brings anew 

A light in sorrow to this dark underworld. 

From yonder steepling rock I hear thy feet 

Move like a downward water; and the peace 

Of thy pure presence, which like some softer 
air 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 37 

Folds thee about, hath touched me, and I grow 
dumb. 

[While he^ speaks, in the cleft of the rock, 
a dim light begins mysteriously to burn'; 
its radiance gradually increases. Pre- 
sently in the midst of it Proserpine ap- 
pears, her head crowned,^ and her hands 
laden with flowers. 
PROSERPINE. Earth, Mother, first one word up- 
ward to Thee 
Far off, I send: 
Mourn not that I am gone ! 
For of my being that hfe thou once didst tend 
Was but a part: 
Thy godhead, mothering mine, 
Hath struck strange roots, deep in the inmost 

heart. 
Upon dead eyes I shine; 
And from this underworld look out on stars 
And constellations, hidden from, mortal ken. 
Yea, and not Zeus, nor Hera, on Heaven's throne, 
Hath seen what I have seen among dead men. 
Or known what I have known. 
When darkness deepens and thick night comes 

on, 
I feel no fears. To me all things are blest: 
Life, Birth, and Death, these with an equal hand 
I keep and cherish. 
And now the fields have rest; 
Sleep lies in every cup of flower or land, 
Night with her sleeping-draught hath locked each 

breast : 
I only wake. And with me cometh a wonder; 
For I, that strawed, have reaped and gathered 
sheaves : 



38 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

From Earth's brief years I sunder 

(Hear, O ye Dead!) 

Life that loves death, lost joy that no more 
grieves. 

And light of eyes which shone to shine no more. 

These to black night and the dark bridal bed 

I bring, and strew them at m/y bridegroom's door t 

Hades, O Lord of Death, 

Into thy hand I resign 

My spirit and my breath : 

Take me, for I am thine ! 

[She stands with arms parted, in an attitude 
invocation. Suddenly the air becomes 
full of a noise of rushing winqs: the scene 
darkens, overhead is heard the shrill cry- 
ing of the FURIES, like the scream of sea- 
gulls. Now and again they break into 
wild chantings, which become more and 
more turbulent and indistinguishable. 
viocES OF THE FURIES. Proscrpinc ! Proserpine ! 

Thou art his ; we are thine. 

Hades, thou art the God! 

O Thou Bride, ' ^ 

He comes to Thy side! 
Hades, Thou art the God! 

Open thine arms and give ! 

Thou diest that the world may live. 

Hades, Thou art the God! 

1ST SHADE. 'Tis the crying of the Furies, 
Power upon power attending. 
Look, overhead ye can see 
Red eyes, and the black wings beating! 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 39 

2ND SHADE. Hither, thither, they are flying-. 
Girding, hovering, and bending. 
Where shall the prey now be? 
What flesh are in the sharp teeth rending? 
3RD SHADE. Peace ! He cometh : " 't is He, 
Hades. They give him greeting. 

[There is a roll of thimder. Up from the 
stream's hasin rises a light of pre: the 
moon-like radiance in whicl'i proseepine 
stand's becomes changed; the glow deep- 
ens; gradvially her formsinks and is lost 
to view. Ground-thunder increases, light- 
nings flash; the cleft of rock closes in, 
darkness. While the thunder continues to 
roll the crying of the furies die's a-^vay. 
1ST semi-chorus. Under my feet earth shaketh. 
And the voice of his thunder rolleth ; 
The realm of death he controlleth, 
His fires have made me afraid. 
2ND semi-chorus. He reacheth his hand, he taketh. 
With fierce fires for the womb. 
He draweth her down to the tomb. 
chorus. O Goddess, immortal Maid, 
Thou his bride — He, thy groom, 
Here, in this place of doom. 
Hath covered thy feet with shade. 
tiresias. The voice of the thunder is still ; peace 
cometh again. 
She sleepeth; her soul is at rest, and she feels 
no pain. 

[Faintly in the distance the voices of the 
furies are again heard. 
voices. Proserpine ! Proserpine ! 
Thou are his; we are thine. 
Hades, thou art the God! 



40 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

1ST SEMI-CHORUS. Night follows day, and setteth 

sun and moon, 
But here, for thee. Time's changes are no more. 
Across the desolate lands thou shalt not see 
When Winter's flail shakes soon 
The shuddering forest, nor when frost lies frore 
On blackened boughs, nor touch the frozen 

streams 
With softening breath, 
Nor with warm hands undo 
The close unopened buds of the blind spring. 
For thou dost yield thy soul to dreams ; 
And Death 
So holds thee, thou canst hear no song-bird 

sing. 
Save in thy heart, 
The quiet, resting heart, 
The deep, unentered heart. 
Asleep the long night through. 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. Yet though thy dream be of 

Death, 
Still thou stayest immortal: 
Not to thy face stand fast 
The bars of the time-bound portal 
Where I stay waiting in vain! 
Thy lips shall again taste breath 
At the birth of another spring; 
And her coming shall cover the past, 
And her new year be as the last. 
When a flush in the white-thorn starts, 
And the thrush or the linnet sing. 
CHORUS. Oh, could I see the face 
Of one, who for death was fain! 
Who had tasted, and wished not again 
For one breath of the life that was lost; 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 41 

But only that summer and spring 

And the years which they bring 

Might cease! 

Surely, then, in this place, 

As of old would my soul find peace ! 
TiRESiAS. Ye Shades, arise, and stand! There 

cometh a God! 
SHADES, [starting Up] A God? What God? 
TIRESIAS. He of the eolden rod, 

The Herald of the Dead; Hermes, his name. 
1ST SHADE. Ah, woe is me ! Not the bright Lord 
of Flame, 

The Bearer of the Bow? 
TIRESIAS. Unto this land 

Gracious he cometh; for now beneath his hand 

He bringeth one whose lips have tasted death 

i3ut Lethe's draught — not yet. So shall ye see 

In her clear eyes the light of memfory, 

And from her lips hear words — tidings of earth. 
2ND SHADE. So shall I thirst yet more. Ah. me ! 
what worth 

Be any tidings now ? 
TIRESIAS. Cease, cease your wail ! 

Enter hermes, followed by alcestis. He moves 
forward with the caduceus extended hack- 
wards. The hand of alcestis rests on it. Hav- 
ing arrived he lifts it away: her hand falls; she 
stands motionless. 

HERMES. Peace to this place of Shades, where 
bloom the pale 
Dream-flowers of Proserpine ; and to her rest 
Peace also, where she lieth! At Heaven's be- 
hest 



42 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

Hither I come, because to immortal eyes 

This soul was blameless, perfect, and pure, and 

wise 
In all her words and ways. Herself she gave 
Dying for her lord, — yea, bought him from the 

grave. 
Where now her body lies. Therefore was given 
This task to me : I, messenger of Heaven, 
Bring hither one whose lips have tasted death, 
But Lethe's draught — not yet. For thee alone 
Is this ordained, till God's will be made known. 
But what dark Fate decrees no tongue shall tell. 
Till time bear fruit thereof. Hail, and farewell \ 

[Exit HERMES. 

TiRESiAs. Time bears and breaks, 

Time yields and takes. 

Time mars and makes, 

And the years run on. 
1ST SHADE. Ye have heard her praised? 
2ND SHADE. Yea, immortal breath 

This word was uttered: 'She gave herself to 
death, 

That one might live !' 
3RD SHADE. How Can this marvel be ? 

1ST SHADE. Think ye she is not dead? 
3RD SHADE. Not vcrily ; 

She only sleeps. 
2ND SHADE. Qucstion : then, if she wake, 

Forth like a mist she'll pass, and yonder take 

The sunward way! 
3RD SHADE. What sign to know thee by, 

Sister? If thou be dead, how didst thou die? 
[All this time alcestis has remained motion- 
less. Now with a slight gesture she opens 
her hands as though letting something fall. 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 43 

1ST SHADE. Thou hast the eyes of Earth: what 

dost thou see? 
ALCESTIS. Death, as a door to birth, where the 

soul breaks free ! 
2ND SHADE. Shall souls be free in a world where 

all lie bound? 
ALCESTIS. Where the dead rest, there, surely, is 

freedom found. 
1ST SHADE. Thou hast come far: art thou content 

to stay? 
ALCESTIS. My feet are weary from the down- 
ward way. 
3RD SHADE. Turned not thy thoughts from the 

path thou didst descend? 
ALCESTIS. Where should they turn? Here is the 

traveller's end. 
2ND SHADE. For longer life hadst thou no will to 

stay? 
ALCESTIS. Brief life remained when brief life 

passed away. 
1ST SHADE. Was there no sorrow for thee when 

thou wert dead? 
ALCESTIS. Aye, sorrow heaped on sorrow: from 

that I fled. 
3RD SHADE. Was there no friend to wish thee back 

again ? 
ALCESTIS. Much he so wished, by whose wish I am 

slain. 
2ND SHADE. Strange are thy words, and who knows 

what they mean? 
ALCESTIS. P^or strange is life, when the grave 

stands between. 
1ST SHADE. Tell us thereof ! 
ALCESTIS. What seeking, would ye know? 



44 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

1ST SHADE. Life thou beholdest; yet hath thy soul 

let go 
The heart's desire thereof. That is most strange ! 
ALCESTIS. Must not all things which taste of time 

learn change? 
Hearken to me! .Between two worlds I dwell: 
Life I now know, having known death as well. 
So from deep night one looks upon a star ; 
Yea, and it shines, but round its rays stretch 

far 
Dark regions, and the undiscovered skies. 
Such is m,an's life: the heavens are full of eyes. 
But round them spreadeth darkness, and be- 
yond, — 
He knoweth not what. 

And this truth having conned, 
Surely I learned how, for brief life, 'twere well 
Within one Being to rest inseparable ; 
And as the stars lie in the hand of Night, 
Which takes and turns them, severing light from 

light. 
And moon from sun and day, even so do we 
Lie in the Hand of that Infinity 
Whose shape is round us. Light fails as it 

flies. 
But where it travels not, there darkness lies 
For ever. Ye Shades, this rest, v/hich ve now 

share, , 
Is but a showing of that which Life shall bear 
Hereafter unto Death: here ye behold 
Dimly that peace which cometh to enfold 
All things made equal, — yes, both Gods and men ! 
TiRESiAs. This that thou tellest lieth beyond m,y 

ken. 
Would God, it were so! 
ALCESTIS. Surely, the day shall be. 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 45; 

So came the hour, when sorrow fell on, me 

That I must die. Then saw I that the hand 

Which once I leaned on helped me not to stand, 

Nor brought salvation — because men fear Death. 

Whom when I feared no more, then forth like 
breath 

Spirit from body parted — but stayed near, 

And saw them lay her body upon the bier. 

And bear it forth unto a place of shade 

Where grew tall cypresses; and there they laid 

That form corruptible. 

Then Death made bare 

His blade (I saw him), and one lock of hair 

Severed ; and at his touch the flesh grew clay ; 

Wherefrom not loath, quickly I turned awav. 

Then Hermes I beheld, and by the hand 

Of that bright God unto an unknown land 

I came: and I am here. 
SHADE. Lo, as a falling water, thy voice to mine 
ear 

Brings comfort again. We are dead; whom, then, 
shall we fear? 
SEMI-CHORUS. As the beds of the brooks, 

When withered by heat. 

Lie fainting for streams 

Of the hill- waters sweet. 

So I sought for thy looks. 

So I longed for thy feet. 

[tiresias ris^s and speaks in vision. 
TiRESiAs. Under the rock, 

By the place of tombs. 

In the shade of the cypresses, he stands; 

And round the dark blade the bright shorn lock 

He bindeth with eager hands. 

Now he hath taken the toll, 

And hath torn body from soul, _ 



46 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

His task is done : let him go ! 

But he stoops to the meats which the mourners 

bring, 
And drinks the blood of the offering 
Where the altar-fires burn low. 

[The SHADES listen in amasement : alcestis 
in a doubt, that changes to fear. 
Ho! who is this that cometh, 
That feareth not Death? 
Over his head he draws 
The lion's teeth, and the claws 
Are knotted across his breast. 
Soft, without sound, he creeps, 
Like a beast going down to its rest. 
Then swift on the prey he lej^ps, 
Without cry, without breath! 
Ye Gods, what sending of Fate 
Hath set such task unto mortal? 
Lo, Death, and the tusks of hate, 
And the shadow of the night-black portal ! 
Shall sinews avail to escape 
Those hands, the holders of doom, 
And the pit, and the cavernous gloom 
Of the graves which open and gape? 
Ah, God, in what shape, in what shape, 
Shall life rise up from that tomb 
Where a body lies slain? 

[The fear of alcestis now increases. 
For there, in yon chamber, is laid 
A king's and a queen's daughter. 
Yea, a mother of kings. 
Why shall they wake her again 
To the grief and the pain life brings? 
Rests she not here in shade 
By the side of the soundless water? 
O Death, in yon tomb, is thy dead man slain, 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 47 

Or what captive is bound for the slaughter ? 
SHADES. Mark ye, mark ye this marvel ! Lo, sight- 
less, he sees ! 

What is this thing thou beholdest? What tid- 
ings be these? 
TiRESiAS. Look! from the tomb he cometh 

He that hath feared not Death ! 

For now he bears in his hands 

A captive, stricken of breath; 

And the body of her that died 

He lifteth, and cherisheth. 

Under the rock 

By the place of tombs. 

In the shade of the cypresses, he stands, 

Victor of Death, with the shattered blade 

And the bright shorn lock in his hands. 

[alcestis stands stricken with horror. 
ALCESTIS. Ai! Ai! 
1ST SHADE. Why dost thou lift that cry 

And that face of woe? 
ALCESTIS. Ah, me ! the foot-track high, 

And the road that I have to go ! 
2ND SHADE. How saycst thou so? 

Thou dwellest here with the dead. 
ALCESTIS. I tell thee, no ! 

Yonder I hear the tread 

Of swift feet that bring woe ! 

Aye, now is the will of the God 

Made plain from the days of yore: 

Yonder I see again 

The bright wheels, and the golden car, 

When the minstrels and singers drew me, 

A maid, from my father's door; 

And a bier was my bridal bed that day. 



48 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

When the Bow and the Quiver made straight the 

way, 
And the hand of Apollo slew me! 
For yoked to the shaft came then 
The lion, and the fierce black boar. 
And they led me forth mid a dance of men, 
With minstrels going before. 
But here was my doom foretold. 
And this shall be cried for a jest. 
How to the tomb I was taken in vain; 
For the boar, and the lion have drawn me again 
From the place of my rest ! 

[A pause. The shades stand gazing at her 
in amazement and grief. 
1ST SHADE. Was not the God thy friend, who 

did this thing? 
ALCESTIS. No God befriended me: He loved the 
King,— 
The rest he slew. 
SHADES. The rest he slew! Woe, woe! 

Enter hermes. 

HERMES. Alcestis, Queen of Pherae, learn and 

know 
The Will of Heaven! Thou ('tis ordained) 

shalt go 
Forth from these shades and live again. 

This end 
Stands wrought by Heracles, thy husband's 

friend. 
To whom Death yields thy fate. The light 

of God 
Shines on thee; reach thy hand, and touch my 

rod, 



THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 49 

And follow me ! 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. Thou hcarcst the word of the 
God, 
What gift he cometh to bring? 
Ah, touch not the golden rod. 
Nor the snakes that sting! 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. Why should he trouble the 
dead? 
Let the living hear, and obey ! 
Be blind, ye eyes, and ye ears 
Be deaf to what Heaven may say! 
SHADE. She is deaf. She is blind. She sees us not, 
nor hears ! 

[alcestis reaches her hand, and touches the 

rod of HERMES. She looks hack as ^ she 

foUozvs him. The shades watch her go. 

SHADES. Woe, woe ! She goeth from us ! 

tiresias. She shall return I 

Not on that soul hath immortality, 

Heaven's greater curse, been laid. Look not to 

learn 
More now than lips may tell ! The rest shall be. 
{The shades continue to stand gazing. 
1ST shade. I see thee yet! 
Hither, with backward look, 
To me thou turnest thy face; 
And the way whereunto thy feet are set 
Seems nothing to thee. 
2ND SHADE. But soon to the light of day she shall 
wake. 
And straightway her heart shall forget. 
And her soul forsake. 
As the God forsook, 

These night-bound shades, this place of the dead. 
1ST SHADE. I see her yet ! 



50 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

But the look from her eyes hath fled; 

For they pierce not the gloom 

Of this hollow where darkness lies. 
3RD SHADE, Here no suns shall arise, 

No sound to quicken the dead. 

Ah, when shall word 

Again in this place be heard, 

For the lifting of those whom her voice com- 
forted? 
1ST SHADE. I see her yet ! 

But dimly ; and smjall and far 

Is the back-turned face. 

And blind, for no eyes I see. 

Yea, the face like a lamp that shone is ^one 
from me; 

And there shines in its place, far distant, 

The light of a star. 

[As the SHADES continue to gaze upward, 
there dawn's from the cleft of the rock a 
dim vision of the sleeping proserpine. 
She reclines seated, her head bowed, her 
lap filled with flowers. The radiance of 
the vision fills the garden. A sleep of en- 
chantment falls upon the shades; they 
stand with closed eyes and drooping 
heads; only the blind tirsias remains gat- 
ing. 



Ill 

THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 



DRAMATIS PERSONAE 

ALCESTIS. AdMETUS. 

Her Nurse. Pheres (his father) 

Her Daughter. Eumelos (his son). 

Her Attendants. His Attendant. 

Chorus of Women. . Chorus of Men. 
Hymen 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

Scene. — A chamber in the house of Admetus, king 
of Pherae. Across the centre, hacked by pil- 
lars, stretches a high screen, zvith curtained en- 
trances at back to right and left. Before it 
stands the bridal couch, in front of zvhich is a 
chair facing the audience. Do'jwn stage ai 
centre on a lower level is the domestic altar. 
By the altar stands Hymen, hearing a torch. 

HYMEN. House of Admetus, whom the Gods be- 
friend, 
Peace be within your gates, and joy attend 
On this day's bridal ! For now Pheres' son, 
Helped by the hand of Heracles, hath won 
Back from the tomb his wife, who blameless died 
That he might live ; and, to reclaim his bride. 
Comes now where, lo, the nuptial feast is spread. 
So shall fruit crown once more the marriage-bed 
And to his loins give sons, and thence make 

strong 
The breed of his great race ; for whom when song 
Was hushed in Heaven, Phoebus, the sun-bright 

God, 
Did shepherd-service, and inglorious trod 
These walls within. To him the God then gave 
This promise, that he should not see the grave, 
If, of freewill, one, offering in his stead, 
Rendered the debt. So passed she to the dead, 
But comes again upraised. Therefore, 'tis meet 
That they which mourned should dance, and 
S3 



54 THE DEATH OF ALCESTIS 

mouths make sweet 
Music about this chamber, decked and dight 
For fruitful wedlock: where I bring Hght, 
And warmth, and blessing. So may surer bliss,. 
And through long years, attend the i^arriage kiss, 
Which here now is to be. [Exit. 

Enter chorus of Women. 

1ST SEMI-CHORUS. As the springs, and the rains, 
and the rivers 

Of hills, that replenish the earth. 

Sink and are lost, yet rise and return 

To the land of their birth, 

And freshen with streams and showers 

All herbs and flowers 

Which yearn: 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. So tliou, O fairest of givers, 

Life-bringer, light-bearer to men. 

With hands most tender to save 

And face by the terrors of death 

Unappalled, and by love made brave; 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. And with lips for the spending 
of breath 

More quick than the lips of a runner 

Whose feet are set to the goal: 

Enter nurse, hearing wedding-raiment. 

CHORUS. So thou, our dearest and best, 

Art risen again from the grave ; 

And the land at thy coming is blest. 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. And for thee, befriended of 
Fate, 

My grief and sorrow were vain; 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 55 

So with joy in my heart I wait 
Till eyes behold thee again, 
CHORUS LEADER. Nurse of our mistress, wherefore 
dost thou stand 
Silent before us, holding in thy hand 
The wedding raiment? Dost thou not hail the 
day? 

[The NURSE lets fall the raiment. 
Oh ! What means this ? 
NURSE. That having naught to say 

Of good, I would be mute ! 
LEADER. From what black bough of evil falls that 
fruit 
Of speech so darkly uttered? 
NURSE. Peace, let be! 

The Gods drive home their gift. Soon shall ye 
see 

Our mistress come forth to your midst again. 
LEADER. Redeemed from death? 
NURSE. Yea, for she lies not slain.. 

LEADER. Thy words sound strange ! . . . But liv- 
ing, thou hast said? 
NURSE. Aye, surely living, since she is not dead. 
LEADER. Speak, Mother: hast thou aught to tell 

of woe? 
NURSE. Ye women, I speak only as I know. . . . 
She that was dead now lives ; gracious of form, 
Gentle of face is she; her hands are warm 
To my hands holding them; she feels no pain; 
Death on her beauty has not left a stain ; 
But pure, but perfect, as on the day she died, 
So have I found her — lovely as when a bride 
First came she to this chamber of our lord. 
. EADER. All that thou sayest is good ! 
NURSE. I speak no word,. 



56 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

Women, but as I know. . . .Ah! God, these 
eyes 

Which knew her as a child! . . . They that be 
wise, 

Dying, let them stay dead ! [Exit nurse. 

LEADER. O women, all ye that have heard. 

What comfort find ye in this word — 

'Let the dying stay dead? 
CHORUS. Earth is old. Time is long. 

And the days that we live are few. 

Many arise, and are born. 

They mount and wax strong, 

Stand thick together like corn; 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. But to them death cometh anew. 

They are reaped, and are borne to the grave: 

Men know them no more. 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. Yet a gift from the Gods was 
breath. 

Not a curse, O sister, O friend ! 

For the search of my heart hath shown 

How life is sweet to the taste ; 

And the sorrow that waits in the end 

For the feet which haste 

Is death! 

God gave me a little breath : 

Shall I not cleave to it now ? 

Enter alcestis, leaning upon the hands of women, 
and accompanied by her nurse. They seat her 
upon the throne. She remains there motion- 
less. 

1ST SEMi-CHORUS. And thou, that retumest to earth, 
For our lord's delight, and this land's. 
Is there no light on thy brow, 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS ^j 

No warmth in thy hands, 

No gladness of heart, when thou hearest 

The voice of our mirth? 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. Lo, robes for the bridal thou 
wearest. 

Though a shroud was thy robe of late; 

And home, O Beloved and fairest, 

Thou comest, redeemed from Fate. 

\^A pause. 
1ST SEMI-CHORUS. Ye Say that the world is old: 

But spring and the years are young. 

And summer to earth gives joy. 

Surely to man, not alone 

For grief, hath this tale been told, 

When the song of the bridal is sung 

In the heart of maiden and boy? 
NURSE. O women, speak to her! Let living fruit 

Be on your tongues ! These lips to me are mute 

And the eyes know me not ! 
LEADER. Whence did this come? 

NURSE. Death's hold is loosed; but mouth and 
heart stay dumb. 

Lo, from the grave she looks, yet sees not life ! 
LEADER. What woe thou tellest! Shall not the 

name of wife or mother move her? 
NURSE. She hath heard them all: 

And even as wind and water, or the call 

Of lowing herds, the murmur of them goes by. 
SEMI-CHORUS. I know a valley in the hills 

Where echoes in the rocks and rills 

Make melody; and there the cry 

Of flocks is heard, and clamorous lambs 

Bleat and hearken for their dams; 

Whom when they hear, from far or nigh. 

Swiftly along the meads they leap. 



58 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

To where the milky udders swell, 

And stoop, and thrust, and nuzzling deep 

Under the heavy fleeces creep. 

Then for them the world is well. 
SEMI-CHORUS, I know a pool 

Of waters clear and deep. 

With wood-boughs overhung 

And mosses green : 

There in the cool 

At noon, when song-birds sleep, 

Oft have I seen 

The swan amid her young. 
LEADER. I know a bed 

Fair strewn with linen white, 

Where in my sight 

One that I loved lay dead. 

Her hands and her feet were bound ; 

With myrtle her head we crowned ; 

Fair she lay as a bride 

And heeded us not. 

Her children clung round her and cried; 

And her lord, bewailing his lot. 

Bowed down at her side : 

And we wept, because she had died! 

[alcestis rises to her feet, and stands with 
half-lifted arms in an attitude of prayer. 
nurse. Now thou hast touched her ! Lo, the un- 
lighted wick 

Of life stands there revealed ! Go, women, quick ! 

Bring in the children ! 

[Exit one of the attendants. Behind the 
scenes the children's voices are heard. 
Hark, ah, hark ! they cry ! 

Lady, thy little ones ! Oh, Heaven must die 

And perish away from earth, if thou stay dumb 

Looking on these ! 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 59 

Enter the tzvo children. 

[They run to alcestis with outsretched arms. 
CHILDREN. Mother ! 

NURSE. Oh, comie, come, come ! 

Yea, children! 'Tis your own returned again! 
CHILDREN. Mother! Oh, mother! 

[alcestis stands as one hearing a far-off cry 
whose sound she remembers. 
NURSE. Alas! Is that cry vain? 

It shall not be! Leap, child, leap to her breast! 
Take hold on her with hands, give her no rest, 
Cry her to pity ! 
CHILDREN. Mother ! 

NURSE. Should this not be 

A call to rouse the dead ? She wakes ! Oh F 
see ! 
ALCESTIS. These are my children. 
NURSE. By the Gods, 'tis true : 

They are thy children, lady ! 

[alcestis bends over her daughter zvith a 
strange look: she takes the child's hair in 
her hands on each side lifting it, and begins 
plaiting it together. 

What wouldst thou do ? 
Oh, look, look, look! 
alcestis. And thou, also, must die 

Some day, fair child, and in the grave must lie. 
Hark, what I tell thee: do not rise again! 
Quiet is that dwelling, and therein is no pain. 
NURSE What hast thou said? Is not this world 
more bright 
Than that dim realm where man can see no light, 
Nor hear no sound, nor feel no touch of hands ? 



6o THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

ALCESTis. Surely the light goes forth to many- 
lands,, 
And seeth all things. Yet our lord, the Sun, 
In heaven stands lonely, and is known of none. 
NURSE. Nay, was not great Apollo both guard and 
guide 
When to this place thou earnest as a bride? 
And round thy chariot's yoke such spells were 

cast 
That lion and boar thereto stood harnessed fast. 
ALCESTIS. I mind me of it. It was as thou hast 
said. 
Therefore I came; and therefore hence went 
dead. 

[The NURSE, turning away with a gesture 
of despondency, signs to an attendant to 
remove the children. 
NURSE. Bear them away ! For now I hear the 
voice 
Of singers and of minstrels that rejoice 
Because the bridegroom comes. Therefore be 

swift. 
Bring, and put on the wedding robe, and lift 
Again to that fair head the bridal crown! 
And thou, bright Hera, favourably look down 
And bless for us this hour! 

[She kneels at the feet of aclestis 

Oh mistress mine, 

Surely thou knowest my heart was ever thine. 

To do thee service for better and not for worse I 

ALCESTIS. Yea, yea, I know it! And yet thou 

wast my nurse! 

[Stifling a sharp cry, the nurse rises and 
mov^s away, alcestis, rohed and crowned, 
stands alone. The sound of music and 



THE DOOAl OF ADMETUS 6i 

singing draws nearer. A look of frozen 
horror comes over her. 
NURSE, Come, then ! for it is time : give me thy 
hand ! 
And if the Gods are gracious to this land, 
Let them work wonders now ! 

[Exit NURSE, leading alcestis, followed hy 
the attendant wotnen. 
CHORUS. And turning my heart from sadness 
I shall have done with fear, 
AVhen the sound of a people's gladness 
Grows loud in mine ear. 

[The women's chorus goes out. Enter the 
meat's chorus. 
1ST SEMi-CHORUs. Happy is he who knoweth 
The hour when his soul is blest. 
Who seeth the gods in power, 
And their ways made manifest ; 
Ready of foot he goeth 
To the goal which giveth him rest. 
2ND SEMI-CHORUS. So shall the breed of his race 
Be as shafts in the hand of a giant ; 
Happy is he, and immortal. 
Whose quiver is filled with their breath: 
He, unashamed of face, 
Stands to the foeman defiant, 
Comes undismayed to the portal 
Dark with the shadow of death. 

Enter admetus attended. 

CHORUS. Therefore with crowned brows. 
Thou comest rejoicing, O King, 
For the Gods have wrought to thy house 
A marvellous thing. 



62 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

[admetus stands before the altar, and offers 
incense. 
ADMETUS. First unto thee, Apollo, thanks and 
praise 
I render, who hast given me length of days, 
And life to hold, and joy, that yet on earth 
Mine eyes see light, which in all hearts makes 
mirth. [He offers the incense. 

And thou, Persephone, and thou, great Head, 
Holy and high, upraised amid the dead. 
Lord of the Dark, to whom all flesh must bow 
When Fate decrees, glad thanks I render now 
For my release, and hers. To thee this debt 
Freely I own. 

{Averting his face from the altar, he offers 
the incense. 
And thou great Hera, who of the highest throne 
Hast share in Heaven, on this once widowed bed 
Look down with shining eyes, and round it shed 
Sweet influences, and let the fruitful womb 
Ripen with sons and daughters. 

[He offers the incense. 
So shall no doom 
Sap out the strength and standing of my race, 
Nor my name be forgotten in this place, 
Where I am King. 

[admetus turns from the altar. 
ATTENDANT. My Lord, here comes thy father! 
admetus. Let him go! 

I need him not. He lived to be my foe. 
Rich with the gift of years, he paid no heed — 
Hugging his withered life — to my fresh need. 

Enter pheres. 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 63 

PHERES. My son, because this day blessing shines 
bright 
On thee and thine, and to this home gives Hght 
In place of darkness, therefore am I come 
To wish thee joy. For when I saw the sum 
Of thine affliction, straightway I did repent 
The wrath I had against thee: yea, and sent 
To tell thee so. Hast thou no word of peace 
To offer in return? 

ADMETUS. Yea ; henceforth cease 

To trouble thyself with me, or aught that's mine ! 

PHERES. Hard words : but harder that proud heart 
of thine. 

ADMETUS. Hard was its need, when sharp tongue 
bit like steel ! 

PHERES. Yet, when the wound is salved, the flesh 
will heal. 

ADMETUS. , Thou, Hviug, art the wound from which 
I shrink! 

PHERES. Hadst thou thyself no stomach, but I 
must drink 
This cup for thee? 

ADMETUS. What use to thee was life. 

Being old? 

PHERES. I loved it, better than thou thy wife! 
Therefore she died for thee! 

ADMETUS. Death, is thy sting 

In this old serpent's tail, that he must fling 
His tainted carcase across my path this day? 

PHERES. Pass ! For no longer will I bar thy way 
To bliss. Go, dull thy conscience with fresh lust ; 
Embrace the body which thou didst cast to dust : 
Feast on the flesh again, thou carrion fly! 



64 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

[admetus advances threateningly towards 
him. 

ATTENDANT [intervening]. My Lord ! 

ADMETUS. Ye Gods ! let him make haste to die, 

For while he lives corruption taints this earth! 
PHERES. My years are with me ; and I know their 
worth 

Better than thou knowest thine. 

[Exit PHERES. 

ATTENDANT. Now is my lord 

Ready? It is the hour. 
ADMETUS. Yea, let the word 

Be given. Call in the women ! 

[The MINSTRELS clash their cymbals. 
ATTENDANT. Yondcr, they come. 

[Tivo attendants enter with torches; tJiey 
draw hack the curtains from the doors, 
and stand to right and left of the bed. 
Enter the nurse from doorway to right, 
carrying a cup. Then from the left com£S 
in the bridal procession. In rigid silence 
the women walk two and two, dropping 
sprays of myrtle from folded napkins 
which they carry between them. The 
movement is sad and full of solemnity, 
sacrificial in character. They pass from 
left to right across the stage, descend and 
pass out. ALCESTis, vcHcd, comes last, sup- 
ported by two women; as she halts at 
left-centre they fall back, leaving her 
alone. 
ADMETUS. Therefore bid all go forth! Close and 
make dumb 
These doors. 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 65 

LEADER. And may the eyes of Heaven look down, 
And bless this bridal ! Hail to thee, thou crown 
Of womanhood. Honour is thine this day, 
And fame for ever! 

[The men's chorus lift their hands in saluta- 
tion to ALCESTis as they pass out. 
[The NURSE brings the cup to admetus; he 
take's it and drinks. She brings the cup 
to ALCESTIS. The two attendants lift up 
and lay back her veil. The nurse offers 
the cup: her hands do not take hold; with 
shut eyes she drinks. The nurse goes out, 
followed by the two attendants, who draw 
the curtains after them. 
ADMETUS. Blessing and peace be thine, O form 
which died, 
And cora'st more fair to be my second bride ! 
For now thou shinest upon me like a star! 
ALCESTIS. I give thee greeting, having journeyed 

far. 
ADMETUS. Mine, or was thine the journey, wouldst 

thou say? 
ALCESTIS. We have both journeyed; mine was the 

longer way. 
ADMETUS. Bitter it was for thee to part from 

breath I 
ALCESTIS. Life filled mine eyes ; I had not looked 

on death. 
ADMETUS. What hast thou now of hidden things 

to tell? 
ALCESTIS. Man knows not life till he know death 

as well. 
ADMETUS. Learns he from death more than from 
Heaven above? 



66 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

ALCESTis. Yea : more of God himself, and life, and 

love. 
ADMETUS. Where foundest thou— love? 
ALCESTIS. Not where the dead lie bound. 

Nor here on earth, one lover have I found. 
ADMETUS. No lover, dost thou say ? Now, by this 

head, 
I am thy soul's true lover. 
ALCESTIS. Thou hast said. 

ADMETUS. Did I not choose thee before all on earth? 
ALCESTIS. The doom of God lay on me from my 

birth. 
ADMETUS. Sweet was our bridal-chamber filled 

by thee ! 
ALCESTIS. The night was dark; I had not eyes 

to see. 
ADMETUS. Reaching my arms I caught thee back 

from Fate. 
ALCESTIS. In each small life the little need seems 

great. 
ADMETUS. Hadst thou no longing, then, to live 

again ? 
ALCESTIS. And not to die: therewith I strove in 

vain. 
ADMETUS. But having died, was there no looking 

back ? 
ALCESTIS. I looked, and lo, the doors of life were 

black. 
ADMETUS. Didst thou not love the children of thy 

womb? 
ALCESTIS. They still were mine when I was in the 

tomb. 
ADMETUS, Home hungered for thee, and the mar- 
riage-bed, 
Where thou wast fruitful. 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 67 

ALCESTis. And where I lay dead. 

Having borne all ! 
ADMETUS. What means that stricken cry? 

Foundst thou no bliss? 
ALCESTIS. Yea, bliss enough to die 

When thou didst ask it of me, O my lord ! ^ 

Oft times he might have slain me with his sword : 
Yet was I spared to die another death. 
ADMETUS. Breathe not upon the past such bitter 
breath ! 
Surely thou knowest, great was my need of thee ! 
ALCESTIS. A greater need befell : I set thee free. 
ADMETUS. Was it not love which took thee to the 

tomb? 
ALCESTIS. Thrice thou hadst planted life within 

my womb. 
ADMETUS. Yea, thou hast borne me sons which 

shall be men. 
ALCESTIS. And thrice I could have died ; but did 

not then. 
ADMETUS. What darker word is this that thou 

wouldst say ? 
ADCESTis. Lo, at thy bidding, I have looked on 
day, 
Life, death and darkness. So thy hand held all. 
ADMETUS. Therefore shall hold thee still: yea, 
I will call 
Joy back to thee again! 
ALCESTIS. My joy I gave 

Before I died: nor took it to the grave: 
Nor brought it thence. 
ADMETUS. Say, then, where dwells it now? 

-ALCESTIS. In thee, if thou be joyful; but if thou 
Hast not found joy, then was all given in vain. 



68 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

ADMETUS. Soon from thy body joy shall spring 
again. 
Breeding fresh life. 
ALCESTis. So Earth must give her yield. 

Unto the hand of him who ploughs the field. 

ADMETUS. And reaps the fruitful sheaves! [He 

clasps her in his arms.] Come, quick Desire, 

Kindle within this heart its wonted fire ! 

ALCESTIS. My flesh is thine: the life therein, my- 

own. 
ADMETUS. To me, thy lover, turn not this heart 
of stone! 
Greater my love for thee than e'er before ! 
ALCESTIS. As it is greater dost thou ask for rr^ore ? 
ADMETUS. Yea, for I thirst! Let the Gods give- 

thee bliss! 
ALCESTIS. What God in Heaven or hell shall grant 

me this? 
ADMETUS. Ask of Apollo ; he hath made thee mine 1 ! 
ALCESTIS. Of that vine-treading thou hast drunk 

the wine. 
ADMETUS. Give me to drink again. That cup re- 
call ! 
ALCESTIS. Again thou askest of me — and I give all ! ' 
[Life goes out of her. She falls hack in . 
his arms. 
ADMETUS. Now art thou mine ! O bride of every 
sense. . 
Ah, what cold horror's this? Breath has gone 

hence. 
Warmth, touch, sight, hearing ! Help ! Lo, unto 

earth. 
Where God sent blessing, a curse hath sprung to ^ 

birth? 
Apollo, thy dart hath slain me! 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 69 

Enter nurse. 

NURSE. What means that cry! 

ADMETUS. She is dead! She is dead! Clasping, 
I felt her die! 

NURSE. Oh, woe is me, my mistress ! Oh, my lord 1 

ADMETUS. Yea, deep into my breast she thrust a 
sword, 
So much she hated me ! 

NURSE. Oh woe, woe, woe ! 

ADMETUS. Death won her love, and Life became 
her foe! [He covers his face with his robe. 

NURSE. O child, is it I that have slain thee? 
For surely thy heart I read. 
And saw how thy face was set. 
But mine were the hands to chain thee 
To the life that thou wouldst forget 
And to bring thee back from the dead. 

[While she is speaking, others enter; the 
women's chorus, the attendants, and 
children. They stand awe-struck, looking 
on. 

NURSE. I knew thy heart. 

Patient and tender; no grief 

Failed ever to touch thee; no smart, 

But with thee found relief. 

But thou hadst a grief unknown: 

Silently, down to the grave, thou hast borne it 
alone. 
ADMETUS. Lift up your voices and cry ! O women, 

shall she not wake? 
CHORUS. Wake, Mistress, awake! 
ADMETUS. She lived, she rose, she returned from 



70 THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 

the dead, having died for my sake ! 
CHORUS. For his sake! For our sake! 
ADMETUS. Earth had not stained her: her body 
was sweet, and her form 

Was fair to the eyes ! 
CHORUS. Oh, the eyes, the eyes! 
ADMETUS. She lay on my breast, she was warm 

To my touch, and the prize 

Was mine! 
CHORUS. The prize — ah, the prize ! 
ADMETUS. Oh, God, have the years to give 

Naught but this double death 

Of the lips that did once so live. 

And were twice so parted from breath? 
CHORUS. Oh, Lady, awake! — return! Put off 
this showing 

Of death! Repent of thy going! 

Oh, mother return ! 

Enter pheres. 

PHERES. Fools ! Why do ye call on the dead 
Who hear not? Never again 
Shall voices burden that ear. 
Death untasted is feared, — but tasted is sweet; 
And the heart where that honey hath lain 
Feels hunger no more. 
Yea, cover the feet that walk not: 
Yea, cover the eyes! 
Night for me is not yet; but there like a lover 

he lies 
Look, there is peace in that breast, 
And her face is a star. 
Old of foot to the grave without rest 



THE DOOM OF ADMETUS 71 

I go: but the journey is far. 

[Exit PHERES. 

ADMETUS. In the heart that my heart would cherish 

The gift of the Gods wrought scorn. 

She is gone from me. Let the day perish 

Wherein I was born! 
CHORUS, Death comes early or late; 

And surely the dead are blest. 

But I must carry the weight 

Of my years to a far-off grave, — 

Lying I know not where. 

Yonder, to cover mine eyes, 

Grass grows, and the green leaves wave; 

And the gold of the sun lies there, 

All bright and at rest. 



LB S 20 



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